Picos de Europa: Overview

In June and July 2017, we spent a week hiking in Spain’s spectacular Picos de Europa. The jagged limestone peaks, verdant green pastures, delicious food, and a pleasant stop in Bilbao made for a fantastic trip.

Read below for our notes on planning a trip, getting around, and where to stay, or jump right into our description of the trip:

Planning a trip to the Picos de Europa

For a small mountain range, we found planning this trip to be surprisingly difficult. Online, we could locate good resources on the various refugios. We also found descriptions of some day hikes, including circuits at the top of the Fuente De cable car and the popular Cares Gorge route. However, we could find less information about how to put the various routes together into a coherent itinerary with some less common day hikes and some great overnight stays.

We did look to some books. While we normally like the Cicerone series, their book on the Picos de Europa was not well reviewed and appeared to not have been recently updated. We eventually settled on Trekking and Climbing in Northern Spain. It presented some longer routes. They covered appealing terrain and helped us get the lay of the land. However, as long, one-way routes, they did not quite fit our preferences.

Both sets of maps are in Spanish but have English keys, and they disagree slightly on translations and place names. We generally found the Alpina maps to be easier to read and, at a smaller scale, a little more manageable. However, even though they were newer (2012) than the Adorados maps (2006 date on ours), the Adorados maps seemed to have more accurate trail information. This was especially true regarding whether a section was a trail or a route or something else.

Planning routes

Planning routes

Once the topographic maps arrived, we finally started making headway on planning. Combining the background from the book we had bought and various blog posts we had read with the route information on the maps, we could mark out potential routes. Gregor Samsa’s excellent photo set and descriptions led us to focus our planning on a mix of day hikes and overnights on or around the central massif.

On the trails

For weather, we recommend meteoblue, including their mobile apps. This is the same weather service most of the refugios seem to use too.

We had expected more developed trails, similar to what I had experienced in the Swiss alps or on our trip to the Dolomites. There were places where this was true. The Cares Gorge is a marvel of trail engineering, and the trails immediately around the Fuente Dé cable car are also wide and well-graded. Other trails, however, were really just routes over boulder and scree. We encountered several spots where fixed ropes facilitated passage. Trail signs are overall sparse. Blazing is mixed. If you go and leave the beaten path, take maps and know how to read them. We also recommend supplementing with GPS traces.

Getting around

We flew in and out of Bilbao, connecting through Madrid. We spent a night in Bilbao after we arrived and the night before we flew home. This worked well. It gave us a day to recover from jet lag (or deal with lost baggage, if we had that bad luck) before driving anywhere. On the way home, it gave us a bit of padding for getting to the airport. We also very much enjoyed our time in Bilbao, where we visited the Guggenheim but otherwise mostly wandered around the riverside.

In Bilbao, we stayed in NH Collection Villa de Bilbao (Booking.com), which we could get at a good rate with our flights. It was conveniently located by the river and just a block from the airport bus stop. It was comfortable and worked well for our needs.

For getting to and from, and around, the Picos de Europa, we had looked into public transit. Ultimately, we decided that a rental car would give us a lot more flexibility. We also got a good rate, so it was not much more expensive than busing. We rented from EuropCar at the Bilbao train station, within walking distance from the hotel. This saved us from having to go back to the airport and meant we could pick up the car and quickly stop by the hotel to collect our bags.

Kyle near the Nervion river

Guggenheim Bilbao and the Nervion River, from Pedro Arrupe Footbridge

Pedro Arrupe Footbridge

On the drive to Espinama

Where we stayed

NH Collection Villa de Bilbao (Booking.com): Good location convenient to the airport bus and the river. Fantastic breakfast spread.

Posada Maximo, Espinama (Booking.com): Smaller hotel, with cozy rooms. The breakfast was a bit basic, but sufficient for us to get an early start. It also was inexpensive, so we felt comfortable booking it for four nights even though we planned to spend two at refugios. This gave us somewhere to keep our things and, more importantly, an easy out if the weather turned out for the worst.

Refugio de Urriellu (web): One of the larger refugios in the Picos, Refugio de Urriellu is in a fantastic location below Naranjo de Bulnes. The views are great. The food was so-so but filling, and the dorm rooms were large but worked for sleeping. To book each refugio, we found that US credit and debit cards did not work. For a while, we were worried that we would not be able to make a reservation. Fortunately a friend working in Barcelona agreed to do the booking for us. While a reservation was not necessary at either on the days we visited — there was plenty of space — we still felt much more comfortable having a confirmed booking.

Refugio Collado Jermoso (web): A smaller refugio in the central massif, also in a good location perched on the edge of a steep valley with expansive views of the western massif. Compared to Urriellu, this refugio was more comfortable and brighter, and it had better food.

Apartamentos El Caxigu, Arenas de Cabrales (Booking.com): Large, cheap apartment (60€ in shoulder season) in Arenas. The location works great for exploring cheese museums, learning about cider and cheese production, and hiking the Cares Gorge. Arenas also has more restaurants than Poncebos and Camarmeña. We did not take full advantage of the apartment since we stayed only for a night. The main thing to know is that check-in hours are limited.

Casa Maru, Camarmeña (Booking.com): Probably the best bed and breakfast at which we’ve ever stayed. Comfortable, spectacular views, amazing local breakfasts, and kind hosts. While a splurge, we highly recommend Casa Maru.

2 thoughts on “Picos de Europa: Overview”

This blog is terrific; I hope you don’t mind if I post links to it in future replies on Tripadvisor’s Cantabria Forum. I only wish I’d had resources like these 30 years ago when I first visited the Picos and was fit enough to tackle these more challenging treks; my 70+ year old knees won’t really cope with much more than the PRP PNPE 24 walk now, so your description is an evocative substitute!

Photos had convinced us that the Picos were unique and that we really ought to visit. When it got down to planning, it was hard to figure out hikes beyond the most popular (Cares Gorge and Lakes of Covadonga). We’re hoping our notes can entice others to visit and help them plan.